It's official- we're definitely CA residents now!

An eventful Tuesday in SoCal! After almost a year in Pasadena, we just experienced our first earthquake! We are all fine- Owen was with our friend and babysitter, Kim since Brian was in class, but he is totally fine. I don't think he even knew anything was happening! Kim said he was in the swing hanging out and his eyes got really wide, but he didn't cry. Kim's daughter Zoe slept through the whole thing (she's 7 mos. old). I was at work and Bri at class. We got under our desks here, but nothing fell. Brian was in class where they also made a move under the desks. It felt like the building swayed for about 10 -15 sec, but it actually wasn't too bad. Our immediate concern was of course Owen. The adventures of a 5 month old in southern CA!! :) Maggie probably fared the worst since she was home alone. :( Poor doggie. Brian said she was slinky and scared and so happy to see him when he got home. A few things fell off of our shelves, but nothing was broken.

They're reporting it initially as 5.8, but we've heard here that they've revised that reading to a 2.3. CNN has a story up if you want more details. http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/07/29/earthquake.ca/



Here's the USGS map- we are just 11 miles north of LA in Pasadena.

A month of firsts

I guess really every month the first year is a month of firsts, but this past month Owen has enjoyed many new things, which we love to chronicle with dozens of pictures! It has been over a month since we have posted here- a month that has been full of celebration and thanksgiving over O's successful surgery and recovery and the birth of our new nephew, Ethan Chase (to Brian's brother Dave, his wife Traci, and daughter McKayla), and also of trepidation and stress over the health of my Dad, who was diagnosed with multiple myeloma (which is cancer of the plasma cells in the bone marrow) and renal failure (he is currently on dialysis and chemo) the day after O's surgery. Geez- it's been a lot.

However, in the midst of all of the stuff of life we continue to enjoy our son and marvel at his amazing feats each day- he is now rolling over and laughing all of the time. He loves to play and is trying really hard to sit up on his own. Brian calls me at work with the latest report and I rush home to watch him "perform", which he continues to remind us, he does not do on command. :) The kid can be laughing for 10 minutes straight and as soon as I try to catch it on film, he frowns.

We have posted a few pics of the last 6 wks. below- enjoy!


This one is post-surgery (you can see a little bit of dried blood around his nose).

It was so amazing that he didn't even have ANY visible stitches and recovered in no time! It was great that Brian and I were both off from work and school and could spend time just caring for him. We also had a visit from our friend Ange from the CCO who was in town for a wedding and our friend Francis from Morgantown who now lives in CO. We were able to have dinner with Francis and really enjoyed seeing him after several years (I lived with his family in Morgantown before Brian and I were married).


The worst part of recovery was really the nose stints- aka Owen's nose ring (see pic below). We ended up cutting them out (with the surgeon's permission) the day Owen and I flew unexpectedly to the East coast to see my Dad just following his hospitalization and diagnosis of cancer. It was a crazy trip- there and back in less than four days and a baby who had surgery just 10 days before. He was AWESOME on the plane- it was his first flight and he did so well and we shlepped all of his stuff through the airport- O in the baby bjorn and Mommy shuffling through by herself (Brian stayed here in CA - he's in the middle of summer classes). We were so grateful for all of you who prayed for us during this adventure together- it was quite a feat, but went amazingly well and it was great to see my Dad and for him to see Owen.



This picture was taken at Nanny and Grandpa's house on that trip- my Mom and Dave (aka Nanny and Grandpa) helped so much and kept Owen for me so I could go to chemo with my Dad. Owen was also able to meet his two Great-Grandma's, Great Uncles, Great Aunt, Aunt, Uncle and cousins, and many friends while we were there. It was his first trip back East and his first time staying at Nanny and Grandpa's house! He had a lot of fun!


Earlier this month we celebrated the 4th (another first for O) with friends from Morgantown (Tyler and Jenny and their two adorable boys) who are here in Pasadena for the summer. Tyler is doing research here at the Huntington Library and they graciously offered for us to go and hang out with them and swim in the pool at the house they are renting for the summer. We had a lot of fun catching up and it was Owen's first time swimming. He wasn't too sure what to think at first. but eventually Daddy convinced him it was ok.


More smiles every day!
Look at those baby blues! He turns heads everywhere he goes and we are thinking we MIGHT let him start dating when he's 35.

We are now preparing for another trip back East for all of us to see both families and friends. We are looking forward to our time in Parkersburg, Morgantown, and Hershey and can't wait for Owen to meet many people who are so important in our lives. Look for more trip pics in the next few weeks. Until then...

More Post-op!

Friends~
Thanks so much for all of your emails and calls! We are finally home after an unexpected hospital stay, although this had nothing to do with Owen's response, but more to do with the caution of our anesthesiologist (she keeps all babies under 5mos. overnight for observation and O is 4 mos). We waited quite a while this morning for the "orders" to go home to come through, as the dr.'s told us we were going home at 7:30am on their rounds, but then went into another surgery forgetting to submit the order that we could in fact head home. Alas, such is life in the midst of a busy hospital! We were very grateful that everyone at Children's was so nice and helpful- the nurses so gentle and supportive of us and the doctors very communicative and understanding- esp. the 2 female anesthesiologists on Owen's case! Our craniofacial surgeon looked like he was going to the circus the morning of the surgery. Brian and I both laughed that he had his "game face" on and when talking with us appeared to have tons of energy and just couldn't wait to get started- the mark of a good surgeon, I suppose, on a Monday morning at 7am! :)

Again, everything went very well- Owen is very swollen and recovery will take a while. He has nasal stints in his nose to hold the shape (one of his nostrils was flattened as a result of the cleft lip and they moved it up a bit) that are supposed to stay in for 4-6 wks., yet he is already frustrated with them and trying to figure out how to breathe with smaller openings in his nose. He did nurse once at the hospital, but hasn't since (they had him on an IV), so we are hoping he will soon begin to nurse regularly and would ask your prayers for that as well.

We will post some pics of our brave, brave boy before surgery as soon as we rest a bit- they woke us every 2 hrs. last night in the hospital to check his vitals and we are all exhausted. Thanks again for your love and care- we are new to this adventure of parenthood and the fact that our heart now walks around outside of our bodies! We are anxious for him to be more comfortable and literally "breathe easier". That is the hardest thing for me- watching him struggle to breathe normally with the stints. Brian struggled yesterday as we heard him screaming and wailing in agony after he woke up and spoke of the pain of that moment. I, rather, was overjoyed to hear his cries, which in my heart meant, "he is awake (my biggest fear was that he wouldn't wake up) and thriving and wants us to know his pain!" ;) I suppose that is one of the beautiful things of parenthood together as married people- one of us holds the other in weakness and those times , thankfully, often don't coincide, but offer us each the opportunity to care and uphold the other. Thank you, too, for upholding our family- we appreciate all of you! In thanksgiving...Megan

Post-Op

To all who visit our West Coast forum here, I wanted to let you know on behalf of Megan, Owen, and myself, Owen came through the surgery with success. He is doing well in his own room, and we are actually staying overnight with him. The change in plans came about as a result of the anesthesiologist expressing the practice to keep any infant in overnight for observation under 60 weeks (Owen came in at 53). There was no surgical need to detain him, just the unlikely and highly infrequent heart/respiratory issues that little ones like him may suffer from.

He has now a joined cleft lip, and a stitch in his right nostril that was collapsed due to the previous dysjoined muscle tissue. The notch in his gum will wait until he's older, and there seems to be no outward signs of soft palatial cleft, although the jury is out until he gets into his higher vocal communicatory ages, around kindergarten and first grade.

Sorry if this seems direct and somber; its been a tough day - I think moreso for me than Megan! We both wept when they took him, and I had trouble when he came out while Meg did a little better seeing the glass as half full. You'd think I'd be elated when we knew he was okay, but his screams and sobs will never leave my mind, which in turn made me sob. I couldn't contain myself and wanted to rescue my son from all the pain and struggle. From time to time I weep at the memory (like now), and pray that this is the worst he'll ever endure in life. And to think that others have struggled well beyond a child with a cleft lip, like the woman we met in the waiting room whose son was Owen's age with a heart transplant. This being a daddy thing is much more painful than I've ever thought. . .

For those of you who have prayed and thought of us, we cannot thank you enough. We have been aware of the work of God in our lives over this weekend and today, through your spoken and thought concerns to him on our behalf. Please continue to pray and think of us, his recovery has just begun.

More soon, perhaps when one of us isn't so raw from the experience!

Owen's surgery!

Wow- it's been so long since our last post (it's becoming a theme!)- life has been really busy lately! We are well- Brian just finished his spring quarter Friday at 5pm and we are very happy to have our Daddy back! We have been passing like ships in the night lately, passing Owen to each other on our way out the door, which has been difficult. We spent Father's Day relaxing and spending time together, which was great! I am trying to make this really quick, as we have to be up at 4:30am to leave for the hospital at 5am. Tomorrow June 16th is Owen's surgery for his cleft lip at Children's Hospital here in LA. We have been preparing for this day since his birth, and yet, several times today Brian and I have joking said, "let's just skip it!- he's perfect just the way he is!" :) Tomorrow morning at 7:30am PT Dr. Hammoudeh, the craniofacial surgeon, and his team will repair Owen's cleft lip and determine if there is a soft palate cleft (there is not a hard palate cleft, which is great news!). We would appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers as we experience this together. The staff at Children's is great and the craniofacial team is world renowned, but he is soooooo very little and he is our baby! It will probably be the longest 3.5 hours of our lives as parents, but we are trying to trust in the Lord's faithfulness and focus on caring well for Owen.

We will post an update with more details once we're home tomorrow night (Monday). Thanks is advance for your thoughts and prayers! In the meantime, here are some recent pics! Enjoy--- he is just the cutest ever!

This pic is a bit older, but we don't have many of the three of us- this was taken Easter morning .

Four months and cute as cake! He's always moving his hands and feet, which makes taking a clear picture a challenge! :)
At the Farmer's market with Mom

Happy 1st Father's Day, Daddy!
Look at that face! He's cutting teeth now, which means drool, drool, and more drool! :)
Our smiley boy- O smiles and laughs all the time now, is beginning to make other sounds, and also "talks" to us.

The 3 S's - sleep, sucking, and smiles!

WOW- it's been a LONG time since we've posted! Such is life with a newborn I suppose- except that he's now just a few days shy of 12 weeks old!!! How did that happen???!!! There's so much to say- where to start?

We ended seven weeks of maternity with visits from our family- my Mom and step-Dad, Brian's Mom, Brian's brother, his family, and my Dad. We loved having our family visit and spend time with Owen- it was such a big help to have them all here and Brian and I both really enjoyed the raw joy that our parents exhibit over pretty much everything Owen does! He is a very fortunate boy to have so many people who love him so very much!

Nanny & Grandpa (this was O's first trip to the beach- as you can see it was cold, but we still had fun!)



Grandma Shope and Great Aunt Millie with Owen at Uncle Dave and Aunt Traci's house. Grandma Shope watched Owen the first week Mommy went back to work and Daddy was finishing his last week of work! They had such a good time!

Uncle Dave, Aunt Traci (baby Shope in the belly) & cousin McKayla


Visiting Huntington Botanical Gardens with Pap


We have learned so much about our son over the last three months-
1.) his loves his binky and needs to suck (often babies with acid reflux, which he has, are soothed by sucking)

2.) he sleeps best in his swing- a record 5.5 hrs. last night- Hallelujah!
3.) he is best cared for when he is being rather "passionate" (we prefer "passionate" to "colicky" :) by being tightly swaddled, bouncing on the ball, while running the hair dryer for white noise- binky in its proper place
4.) he has explosive poop- ask Nanny and Grandpa about that! :)
5.) his face lights up when he smiles and he has a right dimple that he'll showcase when smiling if you're lucky
6.) he LOVES to eat- very specifically from the boob- although he does take the bottle from Daddy while Mommy is at work
7.) he loves to be tightly swaddled with a receiving blanket and then with a soft, cuddly blanket
8.) he can be cold at the beach when it's 95 degrees



9.) he loves to watch himself and others in the mirror
10.) he can melt our hearts in about 0.5 seconds! :)
We LOVE our son!

We are well- Owen is growing like crazy- he was 10 lbs. 8oz. at our last pediatrician appt. in April (he was 5lbs. 12 oz. at birth). Everyone who didn't see him at birth says how tiny he is and Brian and I laugh and say "well, he's basically a chunk now." :) I did go back to work April 2nd and Brian has been watching O full-time- except for M,W for 2 hrs. while he has class (he also has a night class and I'm home with O while he's at class).

Going back was hard- I never thought I would want to stay home with my children- I love my work and vocation and have worked very hard to find positions that really fit well with my passions. Yet, I would quit in a second to be home with my son, although that's not possible for us right now. I am so very thankful that we really have an amazing situation- Daddy w/O full-time, I come home for lunch and nurse on M,W and on T, TH Daddy brings him to my office so I can feed him. My boss and co-workers are amazing- love it when Owen visits and were really, really flexible with me the first weeks when it was really hard to get out of the house on time for work. :) It really helps knowing he is with Brian most of the time and seeing him at lunch every day! We also have new friends, Kim and Chris who take really good care of him while Brian is at class on M, W. They have a daughter Zoe, and we are already talking marriage. Kim and Chris take such good care of Owen - we are so grateful for the way in which God provided them! Chris and Brian go to Fuller together and Kim was recommended by another friend, Becca, who goes to the Fuller wives group with me.

The last few weeks have been quite challenging though with the new routine and schedule. Owen was struggling with colic at the end of March and we were trying to cope as best we could with the help of our visiting parents. We have determined we do in fact have a baby who needs the comfort and familiarity of the womb during his "4th trimester"- evenings were rough and he cried for about 3 hours from 7-10, 8-11 or 9-12 - he's so precise! :) The first few weeks of this were very rough and then we read the Happiest Baby on the Block- a lifesaver!!! We went to visit Brian's brother and his family in AZ the first weekend of April and I was talking to a friend there who had her baby a few weeks after O and explained we were struggling in the evenings (unable to do anything except bounce on the side of the bed, give our screaming son gripe water and colic tablets, and hope he would eventually fall asleep). She asked if I had read the Happiest Baby and I explained we had heard about it, but hadn't read it yet. She went home and got me her copy and I read it in the car cover to cover as we drove back to Pasadena.

The suggestions Dr. Karp makes are not rocket science- and we were doing the very things he suggests, but not in the same sequence and not layering them all together. So, all of that to say as Owen begins to struggle in the evening and needs our constant attention we swaddle him tightly (with his arms in), bounce on the edge of our bed or the exercise ball, give him his pacifier (the kid LOVES to suck!!! and the boob just wasn't cutting it in relation to his sucking needs :) and turn on the hairdryer. If we do all of these things at once he quiets down almost immed. and goes to sleep within about 15 min. (we then put him in his swing on high). If it's a horrible night and he's really struggling it may take a bit longer and we may have to hold him before we put him in the swing for sleeping, but evenings are so much better! Gone are the nights of trying to figure out what to do while we cry with him. I really believe all new parents, even those with less "passionate" babies- should read this book - the info is so great- I really loved the integration of info on other cultures and their practices in baby rearing. We will buy it for every pregnant woman we know! Are we having fun yet?

After a respite of a few weeks with the Happiest Baby info coming to our aid, O is now really struggling with acid reflux, which we think is exacerbated by the nipples we use on his bottles, so we are working to find the best combo for him when the boob is at work. ;) Brian has been such a trooper- it is really difficult to take care of a baby who screams in pain after every feeding all day long! I am so thankful for his commitment to our family in this way and my heart is always warmed when my husband speaks of his desire to care well for our son and be more patient with his cries (I am about the least patient person I know and have had a few nights when I really would have just liked to have given him away- Owen, not Brian!). It has been difficult, but our love and care for him persist in spite of our impatience some nights- God is gracious and for that we are thankful! We laugh that just as we were getting to the end of our rope he began to smile and all of the hard nights faded away! It is just so difficult to see your son in pain and not be able to do much to comfort him. Thankfully the last 2 nights have been better- we have been doing a lot of reading and research, are keeping him upright for much longer after his feedings, and are letting him sleep in the swing, which he did from 12am to 5:30am this morning!!! Yea!!

He is really the most precious boy with a very sweet disposition when his stomach acid is not burning his esophagus (who wouldn't cry?!)! Here are some more recent pics...

He loves to stretch and is ALWAYS moving his arms and legs!
So sweet- he loves the bath water
Tiny toes!

It's very tiring being this cute!

Our favorite Saturday morning tradition- tamales at the Farmer's Market


O loves Moe the monkey!
Owen will have the surgery to repair his cleft lip June 16th- we'll keep everyone updated on the details as we get closer!

Meeting Maggie & life at home with baby Owen

We actually came home from the hospital on Valentine's day after 2 nights there. We didn't have anything ready and our apt. was in chaos, as we had been moving the crib around trying to find a good spot where it didn't take up too much room. Brian was so awesome and went home really late Wed. night after being with us all day in the hospital and put our apt. back together so I wouldn't walk into such a mess. I know, he's amazing, and I am spoiled! :)

Here are some pics of us leaving the hospital...

Owen was not so happy about his car seat, as you can see...



His fuzzy froggy blanket made it just bearable.


We actually didn't even have a car seat- our doula Amanda was going to loan us her family's infant car seat until we could get one since they weren't using it. She went to borrow a hose from her neighbor to wash it off and their neighbor said they don't need their infant car seat anymore- their youngest child outgrew it recently, so we could just have it! Awesome (we have never met these people!). It just goes to show what great community there is here at Fuller- we have been so blessed by so many meals, calls, and offers for folks to come and do our laundry, grocery shop for us- it's been really encouraging and all of this after only living here for 5 months. :) THANKS everyone!

So, now the million dollar question- how is Maggie adjusting to Owen????

Maggie is actually doing very well with Owen! The first day was interesting- she couldn't figure out why we were so concerned with the thing in the small seat- she was very curious- especially when Owen started making noises far more extensive than "fake baby's" repertoire. :)

The first few days she wanted to be right with us anytime we were doing anything with Owen- see the nursing shot below with Maggie's head on the pillow! Now she loves him - esp. sniffing him, which we allow as long as it isn't on his face. She also will come and get our attention if he is crying, "can somebody please help him??!!" She often sleeps in front of his pack n play (although he sleeps in bed with us) and enjoys taking part in diaper changes and midnight feedings.





Overall we are all doing very well- we are slowly adjusting to the great sleep deprivation- poor Brian has to get up and go to work and class. Owen and I are marveling at how quickly my maternity leave is going- I just can't believe he'll be 3 wks. old tomorrow! He is growing very quickly and you can see the difference in pics from his first few days of life and those more recent. Here are a few of my favorites below--- for the complete Owen collection go to http://www.flickr.com/photos/shopeclan/

As you will see we spend most of our time gazing at him and/or gazing at him and then taking his picture! We love our son!!!